Wave guide switch



Dec. 26, 1961 D. H. LANCTOT 3,015,079

WAVE GUIDE SWITCH Filed Nov. 20, 1958 k lz & zn ls FIG. 3 INVENTOR.

DONALD H. LANCTOT BY adoltafldfiia) A TTOPNEYS United States Patent Ofiice 3,015,079 Patented Dec. 26, 1961 3,015,079 WAVE GUIDE SWITCH Donald H. Lanctot, Malibu, Calif., assignor to DOB-L2H Electronics Co., Inc., a corporation of California Filed Nov. 20, 1958, Ser. No. 775,251 1 Claim. (Cl. 333-7) This invention relates to switching devices for transferring high frequency electro-magnetic energy from a source to two or more output lines and more particularly to an improved switch for use with wave guides.

Wave guides are employed for transferring ultra high frequency electrical energy having a wave length of the order of the dimensions of the guide. To minimize losses in wave guides, it is important that the walls of the guide be of consistent dimensions and have a highly conductive surface with no protuberances or other discontinuities. Any variations in the cross sectional dimensions of the passage for the high frequency waves in addition to power loss, may result in reflections. It is important, accordingly, that any switching structure employed for transferring energy from one wave guide to two or more other wave guides present no substantial projections or changes in the internal dimensions of the wave guide passages.

Bearing the foregoing in mind, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a greatly improved wave guide switching unit in which no projections whatsoever exist in the guiding passages and which is so designed as to permit complete sealing whereby dirt and dust or other foreign agents cannot result in poor conducting surfaces or discontinuities.

More particularly, an object is to provide a switch which may be operated while the wave guides are transferring energy with a maximum mismatching during the transitional period of switching of not more than two to one.

Other objects are to provide a switch in which the disconnected wave guide is completely isolated from the connected wave guide, which is high speed in operation, and which may be remotely controlled.

Still other objects are to provide a switch meeting the foregoing objects which is extremely compact, of high reliability, and does not require any overcentering mechanism so that the device can be economically produced and is reliable in operation.

Briefly, these and other objects and advantages of this invention are attained by providing an integral housing having an interior chamber with an input and two output wave guide openings communicating with the exterior of the housing. A single integral movable block is positioned within the interior chamber and arranged to be moved from one side of the chamber to the other in such a manner that one exterior portion of the block defines with one interior wall portion of the chamber when the block is in a first position a single wave guide passage connecting the input opening with one of the output openings. When the block is moved to the other side of the chamber another exterior portion of the block defines with the opposite side wall of the chamber a single wave guide passage through the block connecting the input opening with the other of the two output openings. By this arrangement, either one or the other of the output openings is connected with the input opening, the cross sectional dimensioning of the passage defined within the housing being identical to that of the input wave guide connected to the input opening and the outgoing wave guide connected to the output opening.

The block itself includes a permanent magnet cooperating with magnetic material in side wall portions of the housing so that the block will be retained in one position or the other. Suitable electro-magnetic coils external of the housing may be provided for moving the block from one side of the interior chamber to the other so that no mechanism within the chamber itself is required. Thus, rapid switching can be readily accomplished from a remote location with maximum reliability.

A better understanding of the invention will be had by referring to a preferred embodiment thereof as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is an overall perspective view of the wave guide switch in which certain interior portions thereof are illustrated in dotted lines;

FIGURE 2 is a top plan view partly in cross section taken generally in the direction of the arrows 2-2 of FIGURE 1 showing the switch in a first position; and,

FIGURE 3 is a view similar to FIGURE 2 illustrating the switch in a second position.

Referring first to FIGURE 1, the switch comprises a housing 10 having a hollow interior chamber communicating with the exterior of the housing through an inlet opening 11 to the rear of the housing 10, and two output openings 12 and 13 of rectangular shape in the front face of the housing. Suitable input and output rectangular wave guides can be secured directly to the block faces in registration with these openings. Within the interior chamber there is provided a block 14, a portion of which is visible through the rectangular opening 12 in the view of FIGURE 1. Exterior of the housing 10 on opposite sides thereof are shown two electromagnetic coils 15 and 16.

Referring particularly to FIGURE 2, it will be noted that the inner chamber of the housing It) is defined in part by two diverging side walls 17 and 18 initiating at the input opening 11 and terminating at the output openings 12 and 13. The block 14 in turn is V-shaped having external walls 19 and 20 diverging from each other to form a V having an angle corresponding to the angle between the interior diverging walls 17 and 18 of the housing. The arrangement is such that when the block 14 is in the first position illustrated in FIGURE 2, the external wall 20 defines with the interior diverging wall 18 a wave guide passage connecting the input opening 11 with the output opening 13. When the block 14 is moved to the right as indicated by the arrow to a second position illustrated in FIGURE 3, the external wall 19 defines with the internal wall 17 a wave guide passage connecting the input opening 11 with the output opening 12.

In order to positively retain the switching block 14 in either one position or the other, the block interiorly incorporates a permanent magnet 21 shown in dotted lines. In addition, the diverging side walls of the housing 10 include slugs of magnetic material of high permeability as indicated at 22 and 23. The permanent magnet 21 will thus be attracted to one or the other of the slugs 22 or 23 depending upon the position of the block and thus a magnetic type of overcentering action takes place. In the position illustrated in FIGURE 2, for example, the block 14 will be retained by attraction between the magnet 21 and the slug 22. When the block is moved to the position illustrated in FIGURE 3, it will. be retained in this position by the attraction between the magnet 21 and the magnetic slug 23.

In order to move the block 14 between the positions illustrated in FIGURES 2 and 3, either one of the electromagnetic coils 15 or 16 may be energized, or both may be energized simultaneously with currents of opposite polarities to provide a push-pull action.

From the foregoing description it will be evident that there is no necessity for any type of mechanical projections within the interior of the housing 10. Moreover the entire unit may be completely sealed by employing suitable windows transparent to the electromagnetic energy at the input and output openings. The physical switching itself may be accomplished extremely rapidly under powor and as a consequence of the dimensioning described, there is very little loss of energy in passing through the passages defined by the interior of the switch housing and exterior portions of the switching block.

While the block has been described as incorporating a permanent magnet, the block itself may comprise a ferro-ceramic material provided with a thin conductive surface coating so that the entire block constitutes a magnet. The block made in this manner would have less mass than a metallic block and thus less inertia during switching.

Other modifications that fall within the scope and spirit of the present invention will, of course, occur to those skilled in the art. The wave guide switch is, therefore, not to be thought of as limited to the specific embodiment set forth for illustrative purposes.

What is claimed is:

A wave guide switch comprising, in combination: a housing having a rectangular input opening with opposite side walls diverging from each other in straight line directions within said housing and terminating in two rectangular output openings; a V-shaped block within said defining a wave guide passage with the other of said diverging walls when said block is in a second position so that movement of said block between said first position and said second position switches energy entering said input opening from one of said output openings to the other; a permanent magnet incorporated in said block; magnetic slugs disposed in said diverging sidewalls in positions to be respectively in flux coupling relationship with said permanent magnet when said block is respectively in said first and second positions; and electromagnetic coils disposed adjacent to and exterior of said output openings in flux coupling relationship with said slugs respectively, whereby said block is magnetically retained in its first position when moved to said first position and magnetically retained in its second position when moved to said second position and whereby said block may be moved between said first and second positions upon energization of said coils.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,588,934 Miller Man 11, 1952 2,823,358 Means Feb. 11, 1958 2,827,613 Robison Mar. 18, 1958 2,917,719 Brown Dec. 15, 1959 

